I know myself, and when you start to really know who you are, you don't question it when you read what someone says about you.

I'm living life as best I can - but I'm not exempt from failure and making bad choices.

I went through that stage every teenager goes through: Who am I? What am I? Where do I fit in? In my case I had to deal with newspapers saying I looked fat or tired or my hair was a mess. People always criticize: they either love you, or they don't. But you have to block that out and concentrate on the work. And I feel I am doing good work, and I'm finally getting to see who I really am.

As a singer and songwriter, I have great admiration for many of the budding stars who come to try their hand at performing and can relate to the hopes and aspirations of all the contestants, no matter how good or bad.

The world when I was 13 wasn't truly driven by tabloid magazines and social media and reality shows. I was able to have a little more of a private life.

I had some wonderful times in my 20s, but your 20s are hard.

Every day of my life is going out in public and seeing people's lives and listening to stories - all that kind of stuff musically inspires me.